£39 million pounds found down back of sofa

UK residents have more than £342 million worth of small change around their homes, a survey has found.

Research looking into the hidden value around our homes found that, on average, we have £12.70 in small change just lying around – which, totalled up across the nation’s 27 million households makes more than a third of a billion pounds.

Apart from cash just lying around, the typical Brit finds £3.27 a year in the sofa alone – that’s more than £39 million across the country. The couch is statistically the most likely place for a lost item to turn up.

The study of 2,000 people, commissioned by Yale, found Brits discover a small fortune in pennies, as well as toys and lost possessions while cleaning.

However, among the hidden treasures and lost items await, some unusual discoveries can also be made – respondents quizzed on their strangest tidying finds reported coming across a jar of cat hair, a stuffed animal, and even the neighbour’s live pet snake.

Other similarly shocking items included a prosthetic leg and the landlord’s wisdom teeth, but while a lucky third of Brits have found a piece of jewellery while cleaning up.

A spokesperson for Yale said: “The research shows our homes are full of weird and wonderful items and that, clearly, we’re not always sure what we actually have under our roofs.

“From valuable jewellery that’s been lost or misplaced, to the coins in the sofa – people may well find a few hidden treasures when approaching their spring cleaning this year.

“Respondents reported some incredible, puzzling and quirky discoveries while tidying and it shows that knowing what’s in those nooks and crannies is worthwhile.”

One in six has a very valuable item or treasured possession which they’ve completely lost somewhere within their home, while the average person currently has four important things they can’t find at the moment.

But keeping a better track on the stuff we own is probably worthwhile, results found the average Brit estimates the value of all the goods in their home at more than £15,000.